HOUSTON – Despite strong efforts from both Chelsea Grant and Sierra Whittaker, the Lamar volleyball season came to an end on Saturday as the Lady Cardinals fell 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 27-25) to Houston Baptist at Sharp Gym.

Whittaker, who was playing in her final match for LU, didn’t go down without a fight, putting up 14 kills and hitting .375, but it would be all for naught as the Lady Cards saw their hopes for a return to the Southland Tournament dashed. Whittaker completed her career with 1,124 kills, which ranks 16th all-time in school history.

On the other side of the spectrum, Chelsea Grant brought a fantastic first season to an end with yet another 10-block showing, her second of the year. The freshman is the first Lady Card to compile 10 stoppers in three sets since the advent of the rally-scoring era in 2001. Prior to Saturday, Buchi Okoh was the only LU player since 2001 to post multiple double-digit block matches.

Grant and Cortney Moore both picked up five kills, and Ashley Ellis totaled 30 assists. However, the Lady Cards were out-hit .256 to .171.

Megan Schwartz put up the match high in digs with 14, and the junior ended her penultimate season at Lamar with 1,029 career digs, which ranks 15th in school history.

Erika Rojas registered 12 digs, and the duo of Whittaker and Madi Martin also chipped in defensively at the net, picking up four and five blocks, respectively.

With the loss, LU completed its season with a 9-21 record and a 7-11 mark in Southland play. The conference mark was a five-match improvement from a season ago, representing the second-largest swing in the league this season.

HBU punched its ticket to the Southland Tournament, finishing 14-17 with a 9-9 showing in conference.